U.S. dependence on Russian uranium remains after import ban

The United States continues to purchase Russian uranium enrichment services despite a ban on its imports in 2024. The law allows for temporary exemptions, and replacing a supplier requires new capacity. Agatha Demaré’s column, published by Foreign Policy and translated by Frankfurter Rundschau in Germany, describes this dependence as Moscow’s possible leverage in relations with Washington.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Russia accounted for 26% of uranium enrichment services purchased by U.S. nuclear power plant operators in 2025. This indicator describes the market share of enrichment services, not Russia’s share of all uranium purchased by the United States.

The authors of the column associate the current situation with the program “Megatons in megawatts”. From 1995 to 2013, highly enriched uranium from decommissioned Soviet warheads was processed into fuel for American reactors. In total, 500 tons of such material were sent for civilian use - the equivalent of about 20,000 warheads. In some years, the resulting fuel provided up to 10% of electricity generation in the United States.

The program has helped reduce the stockpile of weapons-grade uranium, but, according to Demare, at the same time reduced the incentive to develop its own enrichment in the United States. After its completion, the plant in Paduc, Kentucky, ceased operations. A large operating uranium enrichment facility on American territory belongs to the international company Urenco.

The ban on imports of Russian low-enriched uranium came into force in August 2024. U.S. law allows exceptions until 2028 if the buyer cannot find a suitable replacement or delivery is in the interests of the United States. Therefore, the ban did not mean an immediate cessation of trade.

According to estimates given in the column, the cost of Russian supplies for the American market in 2025 reached about $ 1 billion, and from January to July 2026 - $ 631 million. For Moscow, it is a source of export revenue; for American nuclear power plants, it is part of the fuel supply chain, which is difficult to quickly rebuild.

The task may become more difficult as the U.S. nuclear power industry develops. Washington intends to increase its installed capacity from about 100 to 400 GW by 2050. Many reactors will require a special type of low-enriched uranium called HALEU. Its production in the US has already begun in limited volumes, but building a large commercial supply chain takes time.

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